Evening Surprise
by Maleth Firedrake
Summary: When Raven discovers Kevin's journal out on the kitchen table of the Tower, curiosity prompts her to find out how the young sorcerer feels about her. What she discovers might just surprise her. (Kevin (c) Me)


**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own Teen Titans or any characters pertaining to the franchise, except those being of my own creation. This story was made for fun, so please enjoy!

It was 8:00 P.M., signaling the end of another day in Jump City. Another day's end of crime-fighting for the Teen Titans, having defeated yet more villains and ultimately were exhausted, and ready to retire for the evening.

Raven, however, wasn't quite ready to sleep yet, as she entered the currently empty common room of Titans Tower. She was tired, yes, but with today's rather hectic schedule, she hadn't time for her usual meditation session as she had planned. But with the rest of the team asleep already, she figured now was a good time to get it done.

Looking around to make sure she was indeed alone, the blue-robed sorceress slowly removed her hood as she made her way toward the kitchen, intending to make some herbal tea to get her settled before she started. Chamomile always gave her the relaxed state she needed in order to truly unwind.

Raven found the tea bags easily enough in the kitchen cupboard near the fridge, and quickly set the kettle on boil while she got a cup ready. She paused, however, when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye on the dining table to her right, and turning her head saw a journal lying out on the wood.

It looked to be Kevin's, if the rough, brown cover and the wear around the edges was evidence enough. The empath tilted her head curiously, finding it a bit odd that it would be out here, and not with its owner.

She couldn't help but wonder briefly where the young sorcerer was – she'd grown quite accustomed to his company since he first came to the tower, and honestly found it...pleasurable, for lack of better word.

Raven blinked at this train of thought, and shook her head to clear it. _Where in the name of Azar did that come from?_ Looking again at the unattended journal, her brow furrowed, her expression turning curious as she debated, then cursing herself for debating. It was Kevin's journal, his privacy, and since the male valued hers, it was only course that she respected his.

But still...

Glancing around again, she lowered the kettle boil to give her some time, before walking over to the table and taking the book in her hands. Oddly enough, the texture was rather smooth and soothing underneath her fingertips, quite unlike it's outward appearance. _Like Kevin_ , the empath couldn't help but compare. Shaking her head once more, she peeled open the cover, hesitating for only a moment, before she began to sift through the pages within.

There were honestly a lot more drawings and sketches than actual writing, but again, her surprise was not great – she knew Kevin expressed his thoughts better through pictures than with words, a natural outcome of his artistic traits. He was a lot easier to understand that way, since he had never really had good experience of social contact with others. How could he, living alone in the woods for five years? Of course, he had Teighenth, but that was a different story.

The first quarter or so of the book contained very old, torn, weathered pages, with much of what had been written upon them being faded out or smudged beyond comprehension. She guessed them to be from Kevin's younger years, when he was still only a child. Lost and afraid, like she was once...and at times still was.

For a moment, sympathy for the boy swamped Raven's being, as she remembered what he had told her of that first year in the woods, shortly after his mother died, and the years following. He'd suffered a lot, something she wouldn't wish for anyone, especially with her history. It was part of the reason why she had brought him to live with the Titans – she couldn't let an innocent such as him be plagued so.

Feeling her emotions getting the better of her, the sorceress sighed and closed her eyes, smoothing them out with a gentle mind's touch, before continuing on through the pages. These were more recent, not even a month old, she figured, and her suspicions were confirmed when she found sketches of their first encounter scattered throughout.

Raven frowned slightly, pausing in her reading for a moment. They'd certainly had a rough time fighting him, then. Well, fighting Teighenth, more accurately - it still bothered her, as well as Robin, that the dragon was such an issue, and they knew so little about him, like what he was doing in Kevin's body in the first place, and she was amazed that the boy had been able to put up with him for so long. That alone showed how strong he was, even if he didn't think so.

If only he could be more confident! Too often he was shy and uncertain in the presence of the other Titans, and when it came to her he was a nervous wreck. It was frustrating, and yet cute at the same time...

Starting upright in her chair – she hadn't even realized she'd sat down – Raven's brow creased in confusion. _Cute? Since when have I ever thought of him as cute?_ But it seemed so normal, the more she thought about it. Truth be told, he wasn't a bad looking kid. His hair was a little roguish, with its tangled brown curls and wild appearance, but she found it rather appealing to his character. And it wasn't simply looks, he seemed to understand her more than the others did. She certainly found him easy to talk to on most things she'd otherwise keep private.

More importantly, he was nothing like Malchior in the slightest. She'd had her doubts, admittedly, seeing Kevin become a dragon that first night she'd met him, but once she'd managed to move past her initial misgivings, the honorable, bright yet timid soul behind the beast was all the more evident to her, and that was what convinced her to trust and grow fond of him.

A whistle from the kettle snapped Raven out of her reverie, and with a groan she got up from her seat and walked over, moving the pot away from the burner before turning it off. "I need to stop this," she said to herself, raising her hands to rub her temples, not realizing the book was still in her grasp until it pressed against her forehead. She was seriously considering just putting it back on the table and leaving it at that. It was causing a whole lot of emotional ordeal – too much than what she was used to dealing with.

But the desire to continue was pressing, and groaning again she ran a hand through her hair, glaring down at the journal. _Only a few more pages. That's it,_ she vowed, and feeling calmer with that decision opened the book up again, picking up where she left off easily enough.

Thankfully, there were only a few sections left, done only in the last two weeks or so, and these were comprised almost entirely of sketches, specifically ones capturing all of the Titans in a wonderfully crafted scene or pose, or simply just a portrait. The detail in them was amazing, and Raven couldn't help but get sucked in. She hadn't realized just how gifted an artist Kevin actually was: he seemed to capture every single little trait of each Titan with each stroke of pencil and pen, and it was astounding.

She found herself taking time to look through each of them individually, noting extensively the personality woven into each drawing. Those of Beast Boy she identified without much effort; each drawing seemed to catch him in all his goofy moments, from shoveling down tofu to simply laughing at some unknown joke. She allowed herself a smile at this, shaking her head slightly, this time with amusement. The changeling did have his humorous moments, not that she would ever admit them out loud.

Robin and Starfire were also easy to find, the former imposing, noble, and with a warrior's spirit in his portraits, the latter bubbly, joyful, but also equally fierce in hers. Cyborg was drawn as a brotherly figure, which Raven found fitting – before Kevin, Cyborg was the one person she always ended up confiding in, someone she could trust.

She couldn't fail to notice, however, that there were no drawings, or writing, or notes of any kind referencing _her_ , and a cold feeling crept into her stomach. Incensed, she flipped through more pages, but they came up empty despite her searching. She didn't know what she was expecting, but she just couldn't shake the creeping sense of disappointment, and anxiety. Why wouldn't she be in here? Did she really scare him so much? Did he not like her as much as the others?

Those thoughts were threatening to consume her when suddenly she paused in her search, fingers poised on the edge of the next page. On an unknown impulse, she flipped to the other side of the book, and sure enough, she found something...and she was shocked.

There were around fifteen to twenty pages devoted entirely to Raven, and if the detail of her friends had been impressive, then the level of care and attention he'd given her left her speechless. Even the simplest of them, such as her sitting on the couch reading her favorite book, or just looking up the stars in a moonlit sky, was enough to make her chest flutter.

But it was what was written that truly took her breath away. Some parts weren't even that long, just small little captions, "Skin like moonlight" being one of them, but it was enough to make her vision swim at the bottom of her eyes. Then there were full paragraphs, containing all his thoughts, his descriptions, his fears, his love...

Raven froze, and with a shaking hand turned a page back. His...love? But...that was impossible. _There has to be a mistake,_ she thought, her breathing faltering slightly, and almost immediately felt a hot knife of shame cut through her for thinking so. She knew she had to stop...but she had to read again. To find the lie in the writing, for how could he love her?

Blinking away her blurry vision, she read over the last paragraph once more, taking in every word.

 _She understands me more than anyone I've ever met, and simply she's just the most remarkable person. Everything about her – her skin, her hair, her eyes, her smile, her laugh – I can't help but to love, and look forward to everyday. I know sometimes she keeps everything inside her – I am guilty of the same – but the rare moments she does show her emotions to me are the most rewarding. Hers hit me harder than anyone else's since they're so fleeting, and I love her for that. Even when she's at her scariest, I would still love her, and nothing, whether it be force of Earth, Heaven, or Hell, would ever change how I feel about her. I just wish I could have the courage to say it to her..._

Raven's breathing came out unevenly as she held the book to her chest, her whole body shuddering. It couldn't be true, and yet she could find no lie, no hint of dishonesty in the words...and _oh,_ how much she wanted it to be true, so much it terrified her. Did he really feel that way for her? And all this time she hadn't known?

"Raven?"

The sorceress' head shot up in surprise, and whirling toward the voice she found Kevin – oh, sweet Azar, forbid her from blushing – standing behind her, looking at her hesitantly.

"What are you...?" He glanced down at the book Raven held in her hands, and his eyes widened. "That's...that's my journal..." Looking back up at her, Kevin's face paled. "You...you read it?"

Raven immediately felt guilty at Kevin's words, and instinctively she clutched the book tighter against her chest. "Is it true?" She asked, cursing the stammer in her voice, but she had to know. "Do you really feel that way? About me?"

Kevin stared at her, unsure of how to reply. Honestly, he was afraid to reply. The words kept dying in his throat, try as he might to get them out, until he realized his hopelessness, and simply nodded, dreading Raven's reaction.

Raven didn't know what to say – she was at a complete loss of words. Her entire being was a raging turmoil of emotions, so intense she thought they would tear her apart. Shock, excitement, happiness...and, with an aura so strong it scared her, love. Her heart was fluttering, her cheeks were flushed, and a warm storm was brewing in her stomach. And Kevin was standing there in front of her, so hopelessly afraid, unsure of himself, so suddenly endearing to her, that she didn't think – she acted.

A nameless compulsion overtook Raven, urging her to set the book aside, step closer to the boy, and seize his face in her hands. Kevin stuttered, panic and confusion lighting across his expression, but before he could even get a word out, Raven was pressing her lips against his in a fierce kiss.

Kevin flinched, the world seeming to freeze before his eyes, and then slowly melt. His heart was pounding in his chest, and soon all he could register was just the feeling of Raven's lips, and her lithe body pressed against his own.

After a time, Raven bit down gently on Kevin's lip to get his attention, and his arms jerked up to her waist in surprise as he broke from the sweet fire of her mouth. Blinking, he stared down at the sorceress, awe, love and confusion written all over his face. "R-Raven?" He started, his voice coming out shakily. "W-What-?"

Raven grinned at Kevin, cupping one of his cheeks gently as she stared back at him. "I love you, too," she said to him, a blush painting her own cheeks red as she did so, but she knew it now to be true. Kevin's eyes widened, a beaming smile slowly but surely spreading across his face, and they exchanged loving glances. A sense of victory came to both teens as they held each other, as well as the burning desire to _do it again_.

As they kissed once more, Raven briefly remembered she hadn't gotten to finish her tea. She didn't care, though – the taste of Kevin's lips was much better than any tea she could fix up.

 **~THE END~**


End file.
